


Routine Maintenance

by meladromatic



Series: The Age of Redemption [1]
Category: The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (TV)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, Redemption AU, here it is, i was sure i would never finish this but, mentions of like...eye stuff so if that freaks you out yknow, nothing graphic though, skekTek still has some trauma but Deet's nice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-09-26
Packaged: 2020-10-28 21:59:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20785712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meladromatic/pseuds/meladromatic
Summary: The procedure would be quick. It would be quick and simple and it wouldn’t even be painful! Some mild discomfort perhaps, but nothing unbearable. It was necessary.So why were his hands shaking?





	Routine Maintenance

It was a bright and sunny day in the basin. With the three brothers casting their light upon the land, all the creatures of Thra seemed to blossom forth- both plant and animal alike. Gelfling moved about their homes- tending the fields, trading and selling, business as usual. The hustle and bustle was welcome and the land and its people thrived. 

Deep within the dark bowels of The Castle of The Crystal, the same could not be said for the inhabitants of the laboratory. Creatures from nearly every corner of Thra sat, dejected within their cages. Occasionally one would chirp or squeak, but were aptly muffled with the sound of bubbling elixirs and tinkering- gears whirring and grinding.

The scientist sat on his favorite stool- his throne in this small domain which he ruled- and worked. Or- well- tried to. _Was_ trying to. This newest project proved…difficult.

The wires connecting his mechanical eye seemed to have come loose over time- which, along with being a great hindrance- was a weakness he simply couldn’t afford. If the others realized he was down an eye they would surely find some way to take advantage.

Once again, the scientist took a breath, lifting the pliers to his face. The procedure would be quick. It would be quick and simple and it wouldn’t even be painful! Some mild discomfort perhaps, but nothing unbearable. It was necessary.

So why were his hands shaking?

With a huff he dropped the tool, closing his good eye and staring at the thing’s blurry shape on the table. How pitiful. He shook his head.

Then a small voice piped up from behind him.

“Um-“

The scientist startled, whipping around in his seat and searching the area- were they here? Which one? Surely it was the Chamberlain, come to spy and mock his weakness. Or perhaps the Emperor, here to demand another new project.

He was surprised when his eye landed on a much…smaller intruder. The Gelfling girl- the green one, surely a cave dweller whose name he could not recall- was stood a bit too close for comfort. He regarded her warily- as if he expected her to attack him. She stared right back with those large, dark eyes, so gentle and curious. It almost reminded him of a few of his pets. He wondered how long she had been watching him.

“_What?_” He demanded, “Can’t you see I’m working?”

She tilted her head a bit, early wiggling innocently, “Oh! I’m sorry…what are you working on?” She dared to creep a few steps forward.

The scientist shook his head, turning away, “…Maintenance.”

“Do you mean your eye?”

He looked back at her. Why did she care? Why did she want to know? How could she potentially use any of this against him? After a few seconds of swirling thought he eventually concluded that- it hardly mattered. A single Gelfling was nothing to be afraid of, surely. Perhaps if he indulged her she would be satisfied and leave sooner. 

“_Yes_. A loose wire, but I will repair it.” He said, “Now, what is the meaning of this intrusion, _Gelfling_?”

“My name isn’t ‘Gelfling’! It’s Deet!”

The scientist hummed noncommittally. There was no point in learning her name.

“And I’m here because the other Skeksis said you haven’t been seen in days! Rian said someone should check on you.”

“Well, you have done your duty. I am still here. Neither Gelfling nor Podling have had essence drained in many unum. You may leave."

“Um…” The girl took another few steps forward, her face clouded with something. Confusion? Turmoil. Indecision. Worry.

“You have questions? Ask them! I don’t have time to listen to your whimpering!” The scientist snapped. Something in his chest was weighed down by the way she recoiled. Perhaps he had been a bit too harsh, “What is it?” He asked- not unkindly.

She unfolded a bit, coming closer, “Scientist…sir?”

“…skekTek.”

“skekTek.” She said his name gently- as if it were a wounded bird she held. "May I ask…what happened, to your eye?”

He gave a bitter laugh, turning his attention back to the workbench to fiddle with whatever he could, “Ah. Yes. Punishment for allowing your friends to take a vial of essence. The Chamberlain blamed _me_. Hah! It should have been _him_ to meet the peeper beetle.”

“Peeper…beetle?”

“Yes.” He said in an almost bored tone, “An insect commonly found in the Crystal Sea. It enjoys feasting on the more…tender flesh. That was the punishment for my incompetence.”

There was a long stretch of silence. The scientist had almost begun to believe that the girl had left until he turned back to check. She stood, staring at him strangely, eyes wide and shining in the dim light.

“That sounds dreadful!” She squeaked, inching ever closer. She paused, looking aside as if to consider her words. “I’m…so sorry that they did that to you.”

He stared at her as if she had suddenly grown second head. Sorry? What did _she_ have to be sorry for? She wasn’t the one to throw the blame onto him. She did not decide his punishment. She didn’t put the cage on his head, or even release the creature unto him. So why was she sorry. 

Perhaps it was a trick. It’s what he would expect from a Skeksis anyway. 

He scoffed, “It’s what I deserved.” His tone shifted as he recited the mantra that always preceded pain- “When we fail ourselves we must be punished. When we fail each other we must be punished. When we fail our emperor we must be punished.”

“No!” The girl cried, startling him out of his trance, “No one deserves that!”

skekTek turned his head to look closely at her with his good eye. She stood almost within arms length of him now, looking up towards him with that pitiful expression. Without warning she reached out and placed a small hand on his arm. He flinched, but did not pull away.

“What they did to you was terrible. _Evil_. Don’t you realize that?”

“Yes.” He croaked, suddenly finding it very hard to speak, “But it made me stronger.”

The words hung in the air between them, unbelieved. A vain attempt conjured to convince himself more than her or anyone else who might be listening. 

“It didn’t have to.” She said, “And it’s alright to need help. It doesn’t make you weak.”

skekTek stared down at the pliers, half-hidden on his messy workbench. Now it seemed that both of his eyes were blurry. He sniffled.

“Here.” The Gelfling girl suddenly climbed up onto the workbench, grabbing the pliers- which were a bit too large for her small hands- and beckoned him forward, “I can help you! Just tell me what to do.”

The scientist stared at her, considering the offer. He could refuse, but something about her kind and open face placated him and the stern look in her eye told him that she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

He sighed.

“Remove the oculus from the plated socket.” He mumbled, leaning his head into her outstretched hand. She smiled.

“Alright.”

Carefully, she raised the pliers. For a brief moment skekTek regretted being so agreeable, but no, he reminded himself, this was ok. She wouldn’t harm him. Gelfling had never harmed Skeksis before. 

Suddenly there was a sharp tug and the scraping of metal as his mechanical eye was pulled from its socket.

The scientist yelped involuntarily, and tried to pull away, but the girl held him still.

“_Sorry_! Sorry!” She said. She had dropped the pliers and was now running her hand over his beak as if calming some wild beast. He growled, shaking free of her hold.

“Does it hurt?” She asked.

skekTek shook his head, “No. It was just…startling.”

“I can imagine it was. I’m sorry.”

He made a dismissive noise.

“What next?” She gently took hold of the mechanical eye, carefully pulling it closer to inspect the wires that attached it to his head.

“The blue wire. It’s loose. Check its connection to the oculus. It must be fully connected into the port.”

The Gelfling girl nodded.

skekTek closed his good eye, using the other to try to focus on the blurry shapes of his workbench as well as the moving green blob that was currently trying very hard to fix the troublesome wire. 

While she worked, his mind drifted, and he repressed a shudder, deliberately pushing away the memory of the peeper beetle. 

It was a memory that crept up on him more often than he would like, leaving him shaking and breathless with phantom pains pulsing in his empty eye socket. The dreams weren’t much better. He was just lucky the laboratory was secluded enough where the others were unlikely to hear him scream.

Suddenly, with little more than a subtle click, his vision snapped back into focus, and he was looking into the face of his little Gelfling friend.

“There!” She chirped, “Is that better?”

He paused, taking in whatever details he could. The girl’s hair was messy, several braids haphazardly tied to keep most of it out of her face. Her skin was a light mossy green, not unlike that of his pet Sidetic, he mused. Her face was round with soft features, namely her eyes and ears which were both large and expressive. When she smiled her ears quirked upwards. She was still gingerly holding his head.

“Yes.” He said, “Better.”

“Good.” With gentle fingers, she pushed the wires back in place, and quickly popped the eye back into its frame. It was still slightly jarring, but the scientist didn’t flinch that time.

He stepped away, observing his laboratory with the best vision he’d had for several days now. It was refreshing. 

The Gelfling hopped down from the workbench, straightening her dress.

“Will you come to dinner tonight?” She asked innocently, “I think everyone will be happy to see you’re alright.” 

He frowned. Dinner? More than likely that would just be an excuse for the others to torment him for one reason or another. It sounded horrible- having to deal with the emperor’s endless questions- demanding results from his research, and the Chamberlain- whining and whimpering his way into one-sided alliances. No thank you.

“Perhaps.” He replied. It was the best he could offer her and she seemed satisfied enough.

“I hope you do! I think it would do you good to get out of this place- at least for a little while.”

The scientist nodded hesitantly.

And with that the Gelfling girl turned, happily sauntering back into the halls and away from the laboratory- gone nearly as quickly and silently as she had come.

skekTek stood, staring. He whispered to the empty doorway-

“Thank you…Deet.”

**Author's Note:**

> from then on skekTek always gets a Gelfling to help fix his eye. Brea does it the fastest, but Deet is the most gentle. Gurjin did it once, but he got the pliers stuck in skekTek's face so never again.


End file.
